The red light above the hospital emergency room glowed ominously.
Ethan sat by the door, the scarf still clutched tightly in his hand.
Mulan stayed by his side, silent.
Uncle Kun paced back and forth in front of the door, a cigarette constantly at his lips.
The Boss stood to the side, his gaze shifting between the operating room doors, Uncle Kun, and Ethan.
It wasn't until dawn that the operating room doors finally opened.
Everyone rushed forward immediately.
The doctor looked at the gathered crowd and shook his head.
Uncle Kun's emotions boiled over. He grabbed the doctor by the collar, glaring at him viciously.
The Boss quickly pulled Uncle Kun away.
Ethan turned and walked down the corridor.
Mulan hurried after him.
The morning air was bitterly cold, enough to make one shiver.
Ethan wrapped the scarf around his neck, a small warmth against the chill. He rubbed his nose, an indescribable feeling making it tingle. Tears streamed down his face uncontrollably, even though Ethan felt he should be able to keep his emotions in check.
"Happy New Year..."
Mulan watched him, wanting to offer comfort several times but unsure what to say. Anyone could spout comforting words, but when tragedy struck personally, it was a different matter entirely.
Ethan took a deep breath and rubbed his eyes.
"The last thing she said... she was asking me to save her."
"And I couldn't do anything."
Mulan sighed, stepped closer, and buttoned up his jacket for him. "You're not a doctor. Even if you were, there might have been nothing anyone could do."
Ethan rubbed his face, feeling the muscles were stiff.
"You've been up all night. Let me take you home to get some rest?"
"What about you?" Mulan looked at him with concern.
"I need to sleep too," Ethan forced a smile. "Let's go, I'll see you home."
Wade Qi pulled the car up in front. They got in.
During the ride, Ethan stared out the window, silent.
When they arrived at Mulan's building and she got out, she was still worried. "Why don't you just come up and sleep at my place? I can keep an eye on you."
"I'm really fine," Ethan waved her off. "Go get some rest."
"Then... call me if you need anything. If you want to drink, or talk, or anything."
"Okay." Ethan nodded.
He waited until Mulan had disappeared into the lobby before telling Wade to drive.
"Brother Seven, what's the official word from the police?"
"A traffic accident. The other driver said the road was too icy, couldn't slow down in time. Mr. Chen, where to?"
"Home."
Ethan leaned back in his seat.
An accident?
He didn't think so.
Anyone with a shred of common sense wouldn't think so either.
Back at his apartment, Ethan sent Wade home to rest. He sat on the sofa. He was utterly exhausted, but every time he closed his eyes, the scenes from last night flashed before him.
Looking around the room, he could almost see it: Lunar New Year's Eve, himself, his mother, Maya and her father, and Serena all sitting around the table for a meal.
"We made plans to celebrate the New Year together..."
Ethan had always considered himself strong, emotionally stable. But now, for some reason, the tears just wouldn't stop. He wasn't sobbing, but a suffocating pressure filled his chest, making it hard to breathe.
He knew he had to do something, or he would go mad.
He grabbed a jacket and headed out. The cold wind slapping his face jolted him somewhat from his dazed state.
Ethan went straight to the police station where he'd been detained before. He knew the female officer worked out of this precinct. The moment he entered, he saw her hurrying out.
"Hey!" Ethan called out; he still didn't know her name.
The officer instinctively looked over. Seeing it was Ethan, she said, "The name's not 'Hey.' It's Grace Zhang."
Ethan walked quickly over to her. "I need your help!"
Grace Zhang noticed the deep exhaustion on Ethan's face, the bloodshot eyes. As a cop, she could clearly sense the aura of simmering rage emanating from him.
Ethan added, "I helped you last time."
"I remember. You don't need to remind me. What is it?"
"I need to see the surveillance footage from outside The Dynasty last night!" Ethan said, then worried she might refuse due to protocol, added, "There was a fatal hit-and-run. Traffic cops ruled it an accident. I think there's more to it."
"Come with me."
Grace led Ethan to a monitoring room and quickly pulled up the footage from outside The Dynasty the previous night. It was Michael Langford's turf, so the camera angles were comprehensive.
On the screen, Ethan saw Serena walk out of the club's main entrance.
Seeing her image again made Ethan's body tremble slightly.
Grace noticed his reaction, glanced at him, then focused back on the screen.
In the footage, Serena jogged to the curb, accepted a gift bag from someone. The bag was from a recognizable, expensive brand. After receiving it, Serena stood there for a few seconds, then deliberately discarded the branded bag, keeping only the scarf inside. She then looked towards the entrance of The Dynasty, where Ethan and Mulan were standing.
Ethan observed the moment Serena turned around. Her face showed a flicker of disappointment, but she forced a smile and started running towards them.
The next second, blinding headlights flared, washing out the camera. When the glare subsided, Serena was lying in a expanding pool of blood. Ethan was seen stumbling over, kneeling in the snow, and gathering her into his arms.
Grace couldn't help but glance at Ethan. She remembered this girl, the one said to be his girlfriend, who was with him during the stabbing at the night market.
Ethan took a deep breath, his clenched fists slowly relaxing as he tried to appear calm. He asked Grace, "From your professional perspective, what do you think?"
Grace rewound the footage and watched it again. "Did they claim it was an accident due to icy roads, loss of control?"
"Yes," Ethan nodded.
"From the video, the vehicle's speed on impact was roughly 50 miles per hour. On a normal snow-covered road, and in a parking lot area, reaching that acceleration requires specific conditions, but we didn't receive any related reports prior."
"Of course, no one would report it. The victim was Uncle Kun's daughter."
A middle-aged man's voice sounded from behind them.
Grace turned sharply. "Sarge."
Inspector Yan Jiang, the head of the city's Criminal Investigations Division whom Ethan had met before, walked over. His fingers danced across the playback controls. "Even if she was just an illegitimate daughter, this was clearly intentional. If we launch a formal investigation, it will disrupt Uncle Kun's businesses. Many operations might have to shut down temporarily. The financial loss would be massive. Uncle Kun definitely won't shoulder that loss for the sake of a bastard daughter."
As he spoke, Yan Jiang navigated to footage from an hour before the incident, showing the vehicle slowly entering the parking lot on the icy road.
"Clearly, judging by his entry, he's not an aggressive driver."
"So, his high speed upon exit means he was either emotionally charged, driving angrily, or it was deliberate."
"Now, look at the businesses around The Dynasty club: three restaurants, two hardware stores, two spas, and three convenience stores."
"There are bars in the surrounding commercial district, but they have ample parking."
"The driver gets out and disappears from camera view. We don't know what he did for that hour. But judging by the time and his attire, he wasn't going for a formal dinner. Even the shortest spa treatment lasts over an hour. Just checking in, selecting a service, waiting for the therapist takes twenty minutes minimum."
"So, during his missing time, two possibilities: One, he bought a pack of cigarettes at a store and chatted with the owner for half an hour."
"Two, he met someone."
"He returns to his car at 11:28 PM. Seven minutes later, he starts the engine and accelerates suddenly."
Yan Jiang finished, made a phone call, spoke briefly, and came back.
"I checked with Traffic. The driver claims the sudden acceleration was because the snow glare was blinding, and when he saw the pedestrian suddenly appear, he panicked and hit the gas instead of the brake."
"Grace, I'll give you the driver's info. Check his income, his bank accounts, including those of his immediate family. Check them all."
Grace nodded and went to a nearby computer to work.
Half an hour later, she reported back. "Sarge, I've checked his immediate family and secondary relatives. No suspicious fund transfers in their accounts."
"However, the driver himself has recently made several large purchases and taken out multiple loans."
"Mm." Yan Jiang lit a cigarette, took a deep drag, and looked at Ethan. "From an investigative standpoint, he now has a financial motive. But to convict, we need solid evidence. That includes, but isn't limited to, a confession that he intentionally accelerated to cause the incident."
"If you need our help to build a case, you first need to file a formal report. Then we'd examine the scene, question the suspect, analyze whether to officially open an investigation, proceed to the evidence collection phase, make an arrest when we have enough, detain him, and finally go to trial for sentencing."
Ethan grabbed Yan Jiang's pack of cigarettes from the desk and lit one for himself. "What are you getting at?"
"Cops need evidence to make a case. But the premise for finding that evidence only requires a hypothesis: we hypothesize he's guilty, so we investigate him."
Ethan exhaled a plume of smoke. He understood Yan Jiang's meaning. Grace seemed to understand too and was about to speak, but Yan Jiang raised a hand to stop her.
Yan Jiang continued, "Generally, when we identify a suspect, we start from two angles."
"First, a grudge. Motive."
"Second, the process of elimination. Who stands to gain the most from this person's death?"